Every year, 5,600 new patients are diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a disease that attacks motor in the brain and spine and affects the functionality of a person. Nine years ago, senior Madison Mater lost her father to the disease.
For the past 12 years, the ALS Association has been hosting walks in Kansas City, Mo. People can enter teams to raise money for the treatment, care and research of ALS. Over the years, this walk has become a way for families to walk in memory of a family member or friend.
“They’ve been doing the walk for a while and I was like, ‘I really need to do this,’ and so it was my birthday present from my mom last year. She helped me organize the team,” Mater said. “It really brought the family together.”
This year, it is not just Mater’s family helping her out. A group of Alpha Chi Omega sorority members led by team captain senior Brittany Reed are participating in the event.
“I heard about Madison doing it last year and then all her Facebook posts about it,” Reed said. “Madison is such a great person and she’s always doing something for other people, so I figured it would be really cool to get the whole house involved or anybody at Baker.”
The 12 members of the team set a goal to raise $5,000, but they have already passed that by $400 as of Wednesday.
“I want to raise money for it. The money goes to local organizations and there is a chapter in Kansas City that worked with us a lot and they were really great,” Mater said.
According to Nellie Seehan, Regional Development Director for the ALS association, the average goal for any team is $2,300, and as an organization, the overall goal is to raise $1 million.
Seehan met Mater and her mother three months ago and described the team as one that “stands out.”
“That girl seems like she would do anything she can to reach her goal,” Seehan said. “She’s a fighter.”
For Mater, this is about more than just raising money. This is about remembering her father.
“I was expecting it to be really sad last year because it was our first year doing it and I was nervous about it,” Mater said. “It’s just a celebration of life. A girl was explaining it as, ‘I walk because I can.’ We are doing this for the people that we love because we can. It’s a huge celebration of life.”
The Walk to Defeat ALS will be at 9 a.m. Sept. 29 at the Berkley Riverfront Park in Kansas City, MO. The walk is one mile and people can still donate or participate by going to the website at www.als-midwest.org.
“I’m really excited to see what it’s all about and maybe make it an annual event after this. I feel like it’s a really meaningful cause,” Reed said.
